The Evil Matchmaker Strikes Again
by Akayla's Pierced Heart
Summary: Sequel to "Butcher, Baker, Evil Matchmaker." Tony meets Lexi's friend Piper. But this isn't their first meeting. Tony's past comes back to bite him and he wants to make it right. But Tim isn't so sure Tony is a changed man. Tony/OC Tim/OC. Centers around Tony. Rated for later.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own anything NCIS or Alpha Chi Delta. Omega Phi Zeta may really exist, but this one is a figment of my imagination.

PAST

Piper Brooks had never felt so humiliated in her life. She left the Omega Phi Zeta Sorority house in tears. Her pledge sisters didn't ask questions. Most of them had been through the same thing she was trying to survive. Lugging her bags into her car she cast a glare at the house just across the street. A few of the fraternity brothers from Alpha Chi Delta were out sitting on the porch. She didn't see the one face that still haunted her mind. Piper got into her car and put Ohio State's Greek row in her rear-view mirror.

PRESENT

"Come on Tony. When do I ever ask you for anything?" McGee asked as they exited the elevator.

"Hah, you mean anything I'm actually willing to do?" By now they had reached their desks. Ziva was already sitting at her computer checking her email.

"She's pretty…" McGee was still trying to persuade Tony. Ziva's eyes came up and she smirked at Tony.

"Prove it." Tony said while booting up his computer.

"You got it." McGee started typing away on his keyboard. Tony got up from his desk and moved to stand behind McGee.

"Who's Facebook page is that?" Tony asked.

"It's Lexi's. It's the only place I know I can find a picture of your date."

"Possible date!"

"How is Lexi, McGee?" Ziva asked from her desk. It had been a month since Lexi had been released from the hospital after she and McGee had been held hostage by Seth Price. Somehow their relationship had thrived after the experience. Ziva had not seen Lexi since last week when they all went out for drinks together.

"She's good. Happy that she's about to become a godmother. Her best friend Amelia is pregnant." McGee finally found a picture of the girl he was looking for. Tony recognized Lexi and Amelia in the picture. The third girl was indeed pretty. In the picture her shoulder length dark mahogany hair was down and being blown about in the wind. She had pale skin and from what Tony could tell, dark green eyes. She looked athletic and her smile was friendly.

"How old is this picture?" Tony said, finally turning to face McGee. His voice sounded suspicious.

"Tony, I took this picture two days ago. That's how I knew it was here."

"So this girl…"

"Piper."

"Right, Piper… What kind of a name is Piper? Anyways, she's a photographer?"

"Yeah." McGee closed out the window on his computer. He had a feeling Gibbs was about to walk by. "When Lexi bought tickets for the Wizards game she bought an extra one for Piper so she could bring someone. But she's only been back for a week. So they left it to me to find her a date. She's worked everywhere. She just spent three weeks in New York working on a pageant spread. She owns her own studio here but travels a lot, so she doesn't really have time to get out and meet people. "

"So she works with a lot of models?" Tony smirked. "This could go places…"

"Okay, if you do agree to this… Please remember that this is a friend of my girlfriend. You may not have to deal with any backlash, but I will."

"Oh, don't worry your big round head over that." Tony laughed. "I'll do you this favor." Tony slowly made his way back to his desk.

"Just don't ask her if she has sisters names Paige and Phoebe. She really hates that joke…"

"McGee, are you certain you want Tony as your wing person?"

"Wing _man_, Ziva."

"He's not actually a wing man. He's just a date for Lexi's friend. But I've warned Lexi to warn Piper about him." McGee shrugged. "Lexi said that Piper is actually pretty good at putting guys in their place. So I figure Tony will be perfect for her." Tony looked like he was about to protest. But right at that moment, Gibbs finally walked by and announced a new case.

NCIS

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this." Piper stood in front of her mirror with her hands on her hips. She had opted for her good jeans and a simple dark green blouse. Lexi had made a comment that dark green brought out her eyes. Piper wasn't seeing it. Her eyes were green but with a dark brown outer ring. And she really didn't care either way. To her it was just a clean shirt. The sneakers were comfortable and she refused to wear the clunky boots Amelia had offered. Her only dilemma now, was her hair. She only wore it up when she was working on a shoot. And only because it prevented her hair from getting in her face. She had wanted it down but Lexi had twisted it up in some kind of messy ponytail that went everywhere. Piper thought it looked cute, but didn't want to admit it. Lexi was still behind her fussing over her choice of shoes. Amelia sat in Piper's vanity chair off to the side. "It's just a basketball game, not a cocktail party!" Piper almost shouted at her friend.

"Okay, okay… sheesh." Lexi finally backed off.

"Lexi, don't get me wrong. I love the new confident you… But seriously, I may have to kill you." Lexi just grinned. Piper really did love the new Lexi. She hadn't known Lexi nearly as long as her other friends. They had met barely two years ago when Lexi hired Piper to do a shoot of the bakery for her website. Piper had taken an instant liking to Lexi and Amelia both. Piper had also instantly liked Tim McGee as soon as she met him. He was sweet and Piper could tell he was the sort of guy who always meant what he said. He was perfect for Lexi. Amelia had warned Piper that seeing Tim and Lexi together was so cute it was almost sickening. By the end of that day, Piper had agreed.

"Okay, so Tony has a bit of a rep as a ladies man. But Tim assured me he is actually a decent guy."

"You don't have to sell me on it, Lexi. I already agreed to go along." She had turned and grabbed her bag. Amelia stood up and smiled like she knew something everyone else didn't. Which meant she probably did. Amelia was sneaky like that.

NCIS

Gavin held Amelia's hand as they made their way from the parking lot to the stadium. Lexi and Piper were just behind them, still bickering over Piper's shoes. Gavin rolled his eyes. His wife had never been much of a fashion monster and he thanked his lucky stars for that. Of course, he thought Amelia looked good in anything. His eyes went back to the crowd in front of him and he spotted Tim waiting for them near the ticket booth. Tim waved them over and the guy standing next to him turned and faced the group. Gavin recognized Tony from the one time they had met, visiting Lexi in the hospital. As they got closer, the bickering behind Gavin suddenly stopped.

"You're freaking kidding me." Piper's venomous voice made Gavin stop and turn. Amelia and Lexi both turned to Piper with questioning looks. Piper's face was scrunched up in a murderous glare. Her hands were balled up into fists at her sides.

"Hey, is everything okay?" Tim had made his way over to the group, leaving Tony by the booth. Piper immediately looked away and tried to wipe the glare off her face. When she looked back, her friends were still staring at her, worried.

"Sorry, I just thought I saw somebody I knew?" Her voice was still strained.

"I take it that it's not anybody you like…" Tim asked trying to ease the tension. Piper grinned, but it was forced.

"Well, the game's about to start." Lexi nudged Piper forward as she spoke. Piper ground her teeth and then the group was moving again. When they finally got to the booth, Lexi handed out tickets to everyone. Piper kept her face down, glaring at her ticket.

"Piper," Tim spoke cautiously, still worried about Piper's constant glaring. Her eyes shot up at him and he paused for a second. "This is Tony DiNozzo. He works with me at NCIS." Tony stepped forward and smiled warmly at her. She felt her anger spike.

"Hi there." _Cocky son of a…_

"Hi… Tony." Again, she forced a grin. This was not Lexi or Tim's fault and she wasn't going to let them feel bad because of her. Tony seemed to sense her annoyance and his grin quickly dropped. _Good_.

Lexi and Tim were the only ones who spoke as the group made their way to their designated seats. Piper didn't look up until they were squeezing their way past people who were already seated in the bleachers. She found her seat number and plopped down so hard she thought the seat might break.

"These are really good seats." Piper's head shot up at the sound of Tony's voice. She felt horrified when she realized that her seat was on the edge of the group right next to the aisle. Tony was right next to her and on the other side of Tim. She would be stuck beside him all night with no one else to talk to. For a split second she thought about asking to trade seats with someone on the other end… But again, she didn't want to spoil the night for her friends.

"Yeah." She forced herself to sound civil. "Lexi does the desserts for the Wizards when they have parties."

"Cool." He seemed relieved she was actually talking to him.

Piper turned her attention to the pre-game show. She tried not to glance to her left but she couldn't help herself. Every time her eyes slid Tony's way, he seemed to sense it and looked back at her. This went on until the game actually started. Piper fought to pay attention to the game. She had never really been interested in sports, other than ice skating. Her eyes glazed over in a matter of minutes and she propped her right elbow on the arm rest. Her other arm fell across her waist. Part of her hated Lexi for putting her hair up. This would be so much easier if she could hide behind her hair. Sighing, she let her head fall onto her hand and leaned away from Tony.

By half-time she had downed so much soda, simply as a distraction to keep her from talking, that she had to pee like a race horse. Without saying a word, she got up from her seat and headed for the restrooms. She had moved so quickly that she beat most of the line. Just as she exited the restroom, she came face to face with Tony. He was smiling at her again. She froze where she was standing and before she could stop herself, glared right at him. His eyebrows came up in confusion and he actually looked over his shoulder. When he turned back to her, her face said 'yeah moron, I'm totally glaring at the person behind you.' She almost laughed at his perplexed expression before heading back to her seat.

When she did get back, she found Lexi and Amelia shooting her questioning looks. She just shook her head and waved them away. When Tim returned, he leaned over Tony's empty seat and got Piper's attention.

"Did he do something to piss you off?" Tim asked.

"It's a long story." She felt her face grow hot.

"Did you know him before tonight?" Piper just nodded. "Is he an ex of yours?" Tim sounded worried but at the same time, not surprised.

"It was a long time ago and he obviously doesn't remember." She could see Tony making his way back towards them. "Look, let's just get through tonight. I don't wanna ruin this for Lexi. She's been so excited about tonight. Just don't say anything." Tim nodded and settled back in his own seat. When Tony sat down, he didn't look at or speak to Piper. His face looked confused and slightly annoyed. No doubt he was wondering what he had done to warrant being glare assaulted. _Let him wonder._ Piper went back to her earlier position with her head propped on her hand.

By the end of the game Piper had seen Tony run his hand nervously up and down his thigh about fifty times. Every time he had done it, he looked like he was about to say something to her, but at the last second, stopped himself. Inside, she felt triumph every time his mouth opened then closed. _Good, he should be nervous. _

The fanfare from the Wizards victory was still in full swing when they decided to get out of there to beat traffic. Once in the parking lot, they were trying to decide who would ride with whom on the way to the bar and grill for dinner. Gavin, Amelia, Lexi, and Piper had all ridden in Gavin's SUV. Tony and Tim came over in Tim's Porsche. Lexi wanted to ride with Tim but that meant putting Tony in the back seat with Piper. By now, everyone seemed to catch on that this might not be a good idea. Though no one said that directly. Reluctantly, Piper decided to take one for the team.

"Lexi, if you ride with Tim, Tony can just ride with us." Everyone stopped talking and stared. "What? It's just logic, people." She sounded defensive. "Let's go."

Tim and Lexi got to the grill first and managed to get them a big table. Unfortunately, it was one of those horseshoe shaped booths. So when Gavin and Amelia scooted in one side, it left Piper once again, stuck beside Tony. Only this time she managed to sit between him and Lexi. She felt Lexi elbow her purposely. When she looked up at her friend, Lexi's eyes demanded answers. Piper mouthed 'later' and picked up a menu.

The table conversation was all about the game, which Piper had barely watched. So she resorted to reading everything on the menu, cover to cover, even after she ordered. When she was done with it, she picked up the drink menu and buried her face in it. She didn't much care for the taste of alcohol but she felt like getting thrashed tonight. Then, one glance at Lexi and she caved. Piper didn't have many friends, but the ones she did have, she cherished. She would not ruin Lexi's outing, not after all the work she put into getting a whole group to go out and do something fun. At that thought, Piper felt guilt roll over her entire body. She was already ruining it by being such a killjoy. The food got there and Piper picked at her plate. When she couldn't stand it anymore, she turned to Tony.

"Have you always been a Wizards fan?" Piper's sudden question made everyone stop talking again. Tony blinked several times when he realized she was looking right at him, and _not_ glaring.

"Uh, no, not always." Tony stammered. "I'm actually more of a Buckeyes fan than anything."

"Ohio State?" Amelia said from across the table. "Didn't you go there Pie?" Usually Piper hated when people gave her nicknames. She had accepted long ago that Amelia would call her whatever she wanted and there was nothing that could be done about it.

"Only freshman year." She did _not_ want to talk about freshman year…

"Where'd you go after?" Tony didn't seem to want the conversation to end.

"Penn State, then on to photography school. I lived in New York when I started my photography career but I moved here about three years ago."

"Is it hard to find jobs here? I heard you were just back in New York." Tony had shifted so his body was facing her. The rest of the table went back to their own conversations. Piper didn't like being put on the spot by him. But again, she felt bad for sulking earlier.

"I do have to travel a lot, but I managed to get a small studio here and something of a name for myself."

"What made you leave New York in the first place?"

"My mom lives in Georgetown. She got sick and I moved to be closer to her." He didn't need to know any more of _those _details. "And I'm actually from here." That was kind of a lie. She was really from just outside of Baltimore… But close enough.

"I grew up in New York." Tony was getting just a little too comfortable for Piper's liking.

"I always hated it there." She smiled when his face dropped. "Too many rude people."

"Yeah," his grin came back. "I like it better here too." Piper cringed.

"Do you mind letting me out?" She tried to smile again. "I think I need some air." He quickly got up.

When she got outside, Piper felt like crying. She always cried when she was angry. But she was more hurt than anything. He didn't even remember…

"Hey." Piper jumped and yelped at the voice behind her. "Do you mind explaining to my exactly what I did to piss you off so badly?" Tony stood there with his hands in his pockets.

"You really have no idea who I am do you?" She crossed her arms, feeling the need to protect herself.

"Honestly, no. And I'm sorry if that upsets you, but…" He wasn't sure what else to say.

"Well, you did me the courtesy of teaching me a very valuable lesson early in life."

"Which was?"

"A charming, good looking asshole is still just an asshole."

"Excuse me?" He sounded offended.

"My freshman year at Ohio State, I pledged for Omega Phi Zeta." Tony's eyebrows shot up and his hands came out of his pockets. "You were a senior… And…" She sighed, willing herself not to cry or throw something. "Your fraternity pulled a little prank…" She could see the realization set in on his face. She forced herself to go on. "You drew my name."

"Oh my God. I'm so sorry." It came out just above a whisper. He took a step towards her. "I…"

"Did you know that you were my first?" He froze and his mouth hung open. "I hadn't even kissed anyone yet. You took my first time and made it a joke." She was surprised she wasn't yelling at him. She should yell. He deserved it. But her energy had already been zapped by trying to hold up the charade all night. "You know … I actually fell for everything you said." She swallowed hard as the memories flooded through her mind. "It may have meant nothing to you but… But you really hurt me." Shaking her head she moved around him and went back inside. She didn't go straight to the table. She needed to visit the restroom first.

Tony sat back down in the booth. He had watched Piper veer off towards the restroom and silently prayed she wasn't in there crying. He leaned over to Tim and whispered.

"Remember that backlash you were worried about?"

"Yeah?" Tim whispered back. His eyes were hard.

"Get ready."

Piper didn't protest when Tim wanted to take Lexi home. Tony just headed for the SUV with his head down. Piper lived closer than Tony so Gavin dropped her off first. She said a quick goodbye to everyone and headed up to her apartment. It was just a small sixth floor, one room shoe box, but it was all she needed. When she got through the front door she sighed and tossed her keys onto the coffee table. With nothing but sleep on her mind, she kicked off her sneakers. A sharp knock on her door made her jump. _What the… _

She opened the door and then quickly tried to slam it shut. Tony stuck his foot out just in time to keep the door open. The look on his face told her that he wasn't leaving.

"You know, this could be considered extremely inappropriate." She smarted off, still trying to squish his foot with the door. He just stood there, not taking his eyes off her. After a few more seconds she gave in and just turned around. She heard him come inside and shut the door. She didn't stop and turn until she put the coffee table between them. "What do you want?" She asked when he still didn't say anything.

"To apologize." His voice was hesitant.

"I think you already did." Her hands went to her hips. She felt more confident in her own living room than outside the grill.

"Piper…" His eyes fell to the light blue carpet. "I was a different person… I was stupid and…" He looked back up at her. "You know, there really is no excuse for what I did to you."

"No, there isn't." He could hear the exhaustion in her voice.

"Can I… Would you let me try to…"

"What?" She was getting really impatient.

"Try to make it right?" Her jaw dropped.

"How exactly do you plan on doing _that_?" The _NERVE!_

"Can I be your friend?"

"My _what_?" Her voice raised slightly.

"Your friend. Will you let me be your friend?"

"Why the _hell _would I want to do that?"

"I'd be a good friend."

"What are you after here? Redemption?"

"I want to prove that I'm a better person than you remember. What's the worst that can happen? If you end up still hating me, then I'll leave you alone for the rest of your life."

"You want me to hang out with you just so you can prove you're no longer a complete ass."

"All I want is a chance." Piper rubbed her face in her hands. She just wanted him to leave.

"Fine…" She could see him let out a big breath. "I'll be your… Friend. But I swear, you screw up once and this little experiment is done!"

"Absolutely." He held up his hands.

"Can you just… Go now. I need sleep."

"Yeah, sure." He said, already turning for the door. "I'll see you later." As soon as the door shut, Piper rushed over and locked the dead bolt.

"What the hell did I just do?" She said to herself on her way to her room.

NCIS

The next morning Piper was still wondering if she had made the right call. She got in her car and started out for her studio. Without even thinking, she flipped on the radio.

"Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends?" CLICK

"We have friends that are old friends. Friends that are new friends." CLICK

"We'll be friends forever." CLICK

"And my friends are your friends." CLICK

"Here we go again. I kinda wanna be more than friends." CLICK

Piper then decided it would be a good idea to drive the rest of the way in silence.

NCIS

Tony barely got to his desk before Tim jumped up and started demanding an explanation. Ziva looked on from her desk as Tim hustled Tony into the men's room. It took her two seconds to make the decision to follow them. When she opened the door, Tim had Tony backed up against the far wall. Tim jumped back a few steps when Ziva came in.

"I want to know what's going on." Tim was serious and just one step below yelling. Tony however, seemed eerily calm.

"I knew Piper Brooks before last night."

"Yeah, I got that!" The door opened and Dorneget came in. He looked from Tim, to Tony, to Ziva, and quickly turned back around and left. "What did you do? Lexi tried calling her all night but she never answered! Do you know how worried she was? I know you had Gavin drop you at her building so you could talk to her. What did you say to her?"

"I asked her if we could be friends."

"What?"

"I apologized for what happened in the past and I asked if we could be friends. She agreed and I left. She said she needed sleep so she probably turned her phone off."

"She actually _agreed_ to be your friend?"

"Yes!" Tony took a more defensive tone.

"What did you do to her? Was she just another conquest that you forgot about?" Now, Ziva was yelling at him.

"Something like that, yes. I'm trying to make it right."

"You actually think this will work?" Tim didn't sound convinced.

"I'm hoping. I do want to be her friend."

"Tony…" Tim clenched his fists. "Tell me you are not just trying to get close to her to meet models…"

"Hey!" Tony stepped forward. "I'm getting real tired of everyone just assuming I'm some kind of asshole playboy!"

"Assume? It's common knowledge!" Tim threw up his hands. Tony moved to stand right in front of Tim.

"This is not what you think, okay." Tony's eyes bore into Tim's. "I know I messed up. It wasn't the first or last time. But now I have a chance to maybe fix it, for once. I don't plan on screwing that up. So back off!" The door to the men's room swung open again. Gibbs walked in and looked around.

"Not even gonna ask." He turned and headed for one of the stalls.


	2. Chapter 2

NCIS

Monday night… Tony figured two days was a good enough buffer for Piper to have calmed down. He had somehow finagled her cell number out of Amelia earlier that day during a visit to the bakery. But only after he had broken down and told Amelia the whole story, and after receiving a threat from Gavin… Then another one from Lexi. And a stare down from Mitch. These people sure were protective of each other. But it had actually been a pretty enlightening conversation once all the threatening was done.

Sitting in his car in the Navy yard parking lot, he dialed Piper's cell. She picked up on the second ring.

"Hello." She sounded annoyed, like he had interrupted something.

"Hey, Piper, it's Tony."

"Oh, hi." She didn't sound thrilled, but not all together pissed of either. This was good. Right? On second thought, Lexi or Amelia had probably warned her that he'd call.

"Hey, are you free for dinner tonight?"

"Dinner?" It sounded as if dinner was the furthest thing from her mind.

"Yeah, I know this great pizza place off West Fiftieth. They're open late. I thought we could hang out. You know, just two friends, eating pizza."

"Uh huh." He heard her sigh. "I'm actually gonna be busy all night photo shopping a shoot I did earlier." She sighed again. "If you don't mind getting the pizza to go… You can come by my place."

"I'll be there in thirty." His excitement carried through in his voice causing her to sigh, yet again.

"Kay, bye." CLICK

Thirty minutes later, Tony was at her door with a large deep dish and a six pack of domestic beer. He wasn't sure if she liked beer, but he wanted to be prepared. She opened the door and walked back to her computer, leaving him to attend to himself. He took the time to look over her apartment. The living room was tiny, but neat. There was a beige couch and a coffee table set in front of a wall mounted big screen T.V. Foster the People was playing from a small stereo that sat just below the T.V. A bar counter separated the kitchen from the living room. The tiny dining area was actually where she had her little office set up. There were several framed photographs of different sizes hanging on the stark white walls. He recognized scenes from Paris, New York, London, and what he could only guess was Tokyo. Her bedroom door was open slightly. He could tell that it was neatly kept, like everything else. He set the pizza down on the bar counter and saw that she had set out two plates and a roll of paper towels.

"Glasses are above the sink. There's ice in the freezer." She quickly saved what she had been working on and turned in her chair to face him.

"I don't know what you like so I just went with pepperoni." He set a slice on each plate.

"I like pepperoni. I usually get it with sausage and extra cheese."

"That's so weird, so do I." He smiled. She quirked an eyebrow like she didn't really believe him. Sighing… Again… She got up and went to the fridge.

"I don't really like beer though." She pulled out a two liter of Dr. Pepper and poured herself a glass with ice.

"I will note that for next time." He popped the top off one of the bottles and sat at the barstool. "Did you take all these?" He pointed at some of the photographs on the wall. She just nodded, still eating. "Impressive." She nodded and mumbled a thank you. He thought she might sit in the other bar stool beside him. But she stayed in the kitchen, keeping the bar counter between them. They ate in silence for a few more minutes. When she reached for her second slice, she paused and looked at him.

"You really wanna do this don't you?"

"Do what?" His mouth was full of cheese. She couldn't help but think how adorable he looked right then. Her mouth twitched and she looked away from him.

"This whole friends thing." She turned her attention back to the pizza.

"Yeah." He swallowed. "I'm serious about it." He washed his pizza down with beer, still looking at her.

"Hmm." She grunted in between bites. Her eyes slowly traveled around the room before finally resting on him. She finished the last of her pizza and washed her hands at the sink. When she turned he was grabbing his third slice. "Well, thanks for dinner." He stopped chewing and looked at her.

"Do you want me to leave?" She was about to say yes… But something in his eyes stopped her. She looked at him for a few more seconds.

"You don't have to, but I do need to get back to work." She turned back to her desk.

"Can we talk?" She got to her chair but turned back to him. "Or do you need silence?"

"Talking's cool." She shrugged and sat down. "I'm not as psycho as Lexi when I'm working." She smirked. Tony laughed. He had witnessed Lexi's psycho work ethic when he had gone to the bakery that day. Getting a frosting coated spatula thrown at him had been a new experience.

"What are you working on?" He moved his bar stool so he was slightly behind her and to her left.

"I did a shoot for a woman who wants to be a model. She wanted some résumé shots done up to pass around. This is actually how I get most of my local business." She brought up the pictures of a young blond woman. Tony didn't think she was that great looking in the face. But the poses looked good. "Girls I shoot for pass my card around if my photos get them jobs."

"That's pretty cool." Tony watched her crop and airbrush. Her hands worked quickly over the keyboard. She transformed the picture so quickly that it left Tony impressed. "How many more do you have to do?"

"Little over twenty. I edit everything first, then I show the slides to my customers and they pick what prints they want."

"You don't have anyone who helps you?"

"I don't really need help. If I'm on a professional set, there are already people there to rig lighting, or do makeup, or whatever."

"Do you do a lot of pro jobs?"

"Not here. Fashion week is the busy season. It's actually a lot longer than a week. But we spend a week in each city we go to. When I covered the pageant in New York, I only got the job because I was one of the photographers they had last year. Someone remembered my work and called me."

"Have you ever had a showing in a gallery somewhere?"

"A couple times. I'm working on another one right now."

"Impressive." She paused to glance at him. "What?"

"You just seem really interested in this." She sounded surprised.

"I'm trying to get to know you." Her eyes narrowed. "Don't friends get to know each other? It's been a while since I had a new friend that I didn't know very well. I'm just playing this by ear."

"Hmm." She turned back to her computer.

"Is that something you do when you're mad?"

"What?"

"The 'hmm' thing."

"Actually it's just what I do when I can't think of a better response."

"Ah." He started to feel a little better. "Hey, are you doing anything this Saturday?"

"Yeah. Lexi and Tim agreed to be part of the shoot that I'm doing of the city. The three of us are going to certain spots I picked out for most of the afternoon." She paused and her mouth twitched. "Do you want to tag along? If I'm gonna commit to this friend thing, I guess it would be a good idea to hang out with our other friends too."

"Yeah, I'd love to tag along."

For the next hour they chatted while Piper worked. They had different tastes in music and sports, but they liked a lot of the same old movies. Tony couldn't understand her love of figure skating. She had the same problem with his love of Magnum P.I. He was surprised how well they were getting along. He wasn't even aware of how much time passed until he caught her yawning. "Maybe you should turn in…" He said, glancing at his watch.

"I think you're right." She rubbed her eyes and saved her work. When she stood up, Tony was moving the stool back under the bar. "Do you want to take the pizza home?"

"You can have it. I'll take the beer."

"Kay." She took the box and shoved it in her fridge. "I'll probably have a slice for breakfast."

"Pizza for breakfast? You and I are gonna be such great friends." He smirked. He looked cute when he smirked. Piper shook her head.

"Yeah, I must be tired." She hadn't actually meant to say that out loud…

"Well, I'll see you Saturday then." He picked up what was left of the six pack and headed for the door.

"Yeah." She followed behind him.

"Hey, uh, is it okay if I call you? Just to chat though…" He turned and faced her after opening the door.

"Sure." She shrugged and yawned again.

"Okay, well, goodnight."

"Night." She managed a smile and closed the door. She slumped against the door after a second. "I may have to kill Amelia." She muttered to the empty apartment.

NCIS

"Did you enjoy your little pizza party last night?" It wasn't exactly the greeting Tony had been expecting when he passed by McGee's desk. But he figured Lexi would have called McGee and told him everything about his visit to the bakery. The pizza had been Lexi's idea of a peace offering.

"Uh, yeah." Tony answered cautiously. Tim's expression had him a little uneasy. Ziva just smirked as she settled into her chair.

"Good, I'm glad." He sure as hell didn't sound glad…

"Kay…" Tony suffered through another five minutes of being glared at before he lost it. "What's your problem!" He yelled across the bullpen.

"That's what I'd like to know." Tony jumped in his seat. Gibbs was standing in the middle of the bullpen, coffee in hand.

"Nothing, boss. Everything is fine." McGee said, still glaring at Tony.

"Whatever it is, work it out." Gibbs headed upstairs.

"Yes, boss." Both men answered.

A few hours later, Tony found himself escaping down to Abby's lab. Abby wasn't usually who he went to for advice, but Palmer was gone and he needed an unbiased female opinion. He sure wasn't going to ask Ziva. As soon as he heard the fast paced music, he suddenly felt safe. He could tell Abby anything and not worry about it spreading around. He also knew Abby would give him a straight opinion and not just tell him what he wanted to hear.

"Hey Abbs." Abby stopped spinning herself in her desk chair.

"Hey!"

"Can I confide in you?" Her face went serious.

"Is it about Piper?"

"McGee was down here already wasn't he?" She nodded. "Damn."

"So, tell me _your_ version."

"I messed up so bad, Abbs. I'd use the young and stupid excuse but… I knew what I was doing. We were bored and looking for some action. The seniors at our sister sorority wanted us to prank their new pledges somehow. So we put their names in a hat and each of us drew one."

"You got Piper's."

"Yeah. I laid on the charm. I remember, she was shy and quiet. Seemed like she had been starved of attention. I took her out, wined and dined for a couple of weeks. We slept together. And I ditched her. I didn't know until I saw her again on our little blind date, that I had been her first. I mean, I suspected but… And I have no idea how she found out about the prank. But she knows. She's known for a while."

"And is naturally completely pissed off." Tony nodded.

"I honestly couldn't believe it when she agreed to be friends. Even more surprised that she willingly let me hang out with her last night."

"How'd it go?"

"A lot better than I expected. She actually seemed to… Not completely hate me. She even agreed to hang out again."

"McGee is under the impression that you are only using Piper to get access to other women."

"I know." Tony rolled his eyes.

"Are you?" Tony made eye contact with her.

"No."

"I believe you." She smiled. "So is this the part where I give you advice or something?"

"Do you have any? It couldn't hurt."

"Just this, don't screw up, but don't walk on egg shells either. Be yourself. Don't go out of your way just to impress her. You basically are a good guy. If she can't see that, you don't need her as a friend."

"You have no idea how badly I needed to hear that." He threw a hug around her.

NCIS

Piper had no choice but to admit to herself that she was having fun. Or at least, not having the worst time of her life. The early June weather was doing her a favor as far as lighting and wind speed were concerned. Her outdoor shoot with Lexi and Tim could not have gone better. Tony had posed for her in several shots. She bristled at the fact that he was so incredibly photogenic.

Laughter brought Piper out of her musings. Apparently Lexi had just said something funny. Piper missed the joke. _Oh, darn…_

"You okay?" Piper looked up from her half-finished lunch to see Tony looking at her with concern.

"Yeah." She plastered a grin on her face. "Just not hungry anymore." She pushed the plate away from herself and picked up her glass. The condensation from the iced soda soaked her hand. After taking a drink she rubbed her hand on her jeans. When she looked back up she saw Tony's eyes still on her. It wasn't so much a stare, but a… Gaze? She squirmed and he finally looked away.

"When do you have to get to your next shoot?" Lexi's voice cut through her haze again.

"It's tonight at the Lans."

"Lans?" Tim asked.

"It's a new club. The owner wants me to take promotional shots for his website. I don't have to be there until eight." She looked at her watch. It was a little after one. "I've pretty much gotten all the shots I wanted for now. Did you guys want to split up?" They had all met up at the bakery and taken Piper's Jeep Grand Cherokee around the city.

"Do you have somewhere you need to be?" Lexi asked.

"I was gonna go see Mom." Lexi's eyes squinted for a split second at Piper. Tony caught it. "I can take you back whenever your ready though."

"We can go now." Lexi stood up, pulling Tim with her.

The ride back to the bakery was quiet except for the conversation in the backseat. Tony kept his eyes on the passing scenery. Once they were parked, Lexi and Tim said their goodbyes. Tony lingered in the passenger seat. Piper had almost put the jeep back in drive before she even noticed he hadn't gotten out.

"Something wrong?" She raised her eyebrows.

"We had fun today, right?" He asked, shifting to face her.

"Surprisingly enough, yes."

"Can we do something together again?"

"Like what?"

"Movie night or something?" He shrugged.

"I could go for that." Her lips twitched. "When are you free?"

"Uh, might not be till next week. But I'll call you."

"Hmm. Okay."

"Can I see those pictures of me when you get done with them?"

"Yeah, I'm gonna email them to Lexi for approval. Uh, if you give me your email…" She fished her phone out of her pocket and handed it to him. "Do you just want the shots of you?"

"Yeah. Can you make me look good?"

"I'll do my best." Her voce became teasing.

"Well, thank you." He sounded equally sarcastic. She got her phone back and waited for him to leave. When he still didn't…

"Something else?"

"No, sorry." He sounded like he had just snapped out of a trance.

"Kay, well, bye."

"See you later." He finally left.

"Well, that was kinda creepy." She muttered to herself while shifting the car into gear.

NCIS

After a few more weeks things grew more relaxed between Tony and Piper. Tony had finally stopped walking on eggshells (as Abby had put it) and Piper ran out of excuses to hate him. She had also given up on constantly baiting him to screw things up. She still wasn't sure why he was so intent on making things right with her. But she had finally gotten to a point where she was enjoying the friendship instead of questioning it.

"How the hell did I let you talk me into this?" Tony had just fallen on his butt for about the tenth time that day. Piper spun around effortlessly in her rollerblades and laughed at him.

"Excuse me, but if I recall, this was your idea." She hovered over him and held out her arm. Once he was standing again, he maneuvered himself to a nearby bench.

"You should have talked me out of it then." He groaned as he sat down. Still laughing, Piper joined him.

"How was I to know you were such a baby." Tony jerked around to face her.

"I am not a baby! Like most normal human beings, I walk to get to where I'm going. I don't glide around on skates!"

"Well next time we hang out, you should pick something more normal then." Piper pulled a bottle of water out of her small backpack and offered it to him. He took it and smiled.

"You don't mind drinking after me?" He asked before uncapping the bottle.

"I have one too." She pulled out another bottle.

"You come prepared, nice."

"DiNozzo?" A male voice made both of them look up. Piper didn't recognize the dark haired guy in the cheap suit. Tony did.

"McCadden?"

"Hey, man, how you been?" Tony carefully stood and shook his hand.

"Not bad at all. You?"

"Pretty good." Tony saw McCadden's eyes shift.

"This is Piper Brooks. She's a friend of mine. Piper, this is Detective Phil McCadden." McCadden offered his hand to Piper. She shoved her water bottle in her bag and briefly shook his hand.

"Pleasures all mine." McCadden smiled down at her. She grimaced slightly but quickly turned it into a grin.

"Nice to meet you." Her tone set off an alarm bell in Tony's head.

"Well, uh, we actually need to get going. We have a lunch reservation." Tony quickly said. Not missing a beat, Piper stood up and looked at her watch.

"Oh man, I didn't even realize how much time had passed. I'm glad one of us was watching."

"We gotta go." Tony shrugged to McCadden who was still staring at Piper. Piper grabbed Tony's hand and started to pull him.

"It was nice meeting you." She called over her shoulder as they rolled away. Tony didn't say a word until they were back at Piper's jeep. They changed back into their shoes and got in.

"Okay, what was that?" Tony finally asked when Piper started the jeep.

"I'm not sure if I should say anything but… That guy used to date Lexi." Tony's eyes widened. "They dated for like four months last year. He kinda left her burned… I didn't recognize him until you said his name. Amelia used to call him the Foul Caddy." Tony laughed.

"I wonder what Amelia calls me?"

"Whatever it is, you can bet she'll say it to your face eventually." Tony nodded in agreement. "So where _are_ we eating lunch?"

"Pizza?"

"Pizza." She drove in silence for a minute. "Are you gonna tell McGee about Caddy?"

"Oh come on…" Tony grinned evilly. "McGee already hates that guy."

"You are gonna tell him."

"Yup!"

NCIS

For another two days Tony managed to hold in the little piece of information he had learned about McGee's precious Lexi. Then McGee smarted off to him in the bullpen one afternoon and Tony needed something to throw back at him.

"Hey, do you know who dated Lexi just before you?"

"No… It was a year ago." McGee went from annoyed to suspicious. "Why?"

"Well, Piper knows him. We ran into him the other day when we were in the park rollerblading."

"You went rollerblading?" Ziva asked.

"I'm gonna pretend your incredulous tone did _not _just insult me." Tony shot back. He turned in his chair to face McGee again and smirked. "So, do you wanna know?"

"If I do, I'll just ask Lexi." McGee's eyes fell back to his computer.

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea. I mean, Piper did say this guy left Lexi… What was the word she used?" McGee's eyes came back up and glared. "Burned."

"Fine!" McGee slammed his hand on his desk. "Just tell me who it is and stop annoying me."

"Stop annoying all of us, DiNozzo."

"Yes, boss!"

"Gear up, dead Marine."

"On it boss!"

NCIS

That night…

"You are such an ass." Piper's voice scolded him. Tony laughed into his phone as he drove. "Do you know how long I had to listen to Lexi rant about me outing her? I can't believe you told him!"

"I warned you I would."

"You're still an ass." Tony heard something in the back round that sounded oddly familiar.

"Where are you?"

"I'm at home watching a movie."

"What are you watching?"

"Assassins."

"Hey! You're watching Sly Stone and Antonio Banderas without me?"

"Not to mention the very hot and delicious Julianne Moore."

"Ah! How dare you!"

"Would you like to come over and watch it with me?"

"Yes! But now I've missed the beginning! No fair!"

"Well, you see, my cable comes with this really cool feature called TiVo. I can rewind it to the beginning and pause it till you get here."

"Well, good! You do that!"

"Hey, just don't forget the rule."

"Rule?"

"Haven't you been to my apartment enough times to know the rule? No coming through my door without food." Tony thought for a second. He had been to her apartment at least half a dozen times. And yes, each time she had asked him to bring food.

"Pizza?"

"Ech. I'm sick of pizza. Bring something else."

"Okay."

Half an hour later Tony and Piper were settled on her couch, each holding a box of Chinese takeout. Piper had pulled the coffee table up and they were both using it as a footstool.

"Oh, baby." Piper moaned at the big screen in front of them. "Such a hunk."

"Which one, Sly or Antonio?"

"Oh, Sly of course. All that muscle…"

"You know, muscles aren't everything."

"Maybe not, but they sure do help a girl's wet dream."

"You are so sad."

"Like you haven't been panting over the lovely Julianne." Her hand shot out and she smacked his arm.

"Hey!"

"Or are you lusting after Antonio?" Tony jerked and faced her. His mouth hung open. "Or… not…"

"Yeah, not!"

"Okay, okay… Don't be such a baby."

"I'm not a baby." He mumbled and turned back to the screen. Piper just laughed and shook her head.

By the last fifteen minutes of the movie, Tony saw Piper yawning. She shifted on the couch trying to get comfortable. By the time she was done, she had sprawled across the couch with her feet almost touching his thigh. She let her head rest on the soft arm of the couch. He almost asked if she wanted him to leave, but he just went back to watching the movie. After a few minutes, he felt his eyes growing heavy.

Tony opened his eyes. Sunlight trickled in from the window next to the couch. His eyes widened when he realized exactly where he was… He was on his side, with his back up against the back of the couch. One of his arms was stretched out above his head, the other was wrapped around Piper's shoulder. Piper was stretched out in front of him with her face close to his chest. One of her arms rested on his waist. He had no idea how they had ended up like this. Her familiar scent wafted up his nose. He could never guess the scent. It was spring-like and slightly floral. But it wasn't overly sweet, like most perfumes. He let himself lay there until the urge to pee made him move.

How was he going to get out of this? As carefully as he could, he eased himself up and over her. She groaned as her body fell away from him. He quietly padded into the bathroom. Once he was done with the necessities, he opened up the cabinet above the sink. She didn't have much makeup. She didn't have much of anything as far a beauty products went. No hairspray, no special face creams or gels, not even a bottle of perfume. She did have a half-full bottle of lotion. He uncapped it and took a whiff. That was the scent! He inhaled it again. Looking at the bottle he read _Cotton Blossom._ He'd have to remember that. He quickly put the bottle back and closed the cabinet.

Back in the front room, he found Piper still sleeping soundly. She had rolled over and was now pressed against the back of the couch. Tony gently laid down, facing her. He was so intent on not waking her that he didn't realize she'd had her eyes open and was watching him the whole time. When he finally looked at her face, he almost jumped out of surprise.

"Comfy?" He asked. She nodded and closed her eyes again.

"Um hungry." She mumbled.

"Want me to move so you can get up?"

"No wanna get up. Sweepy."

"Uh, okay… You're like a grumpy toddler when you wake up, aren't you?"

"No gwumpy!"

"Riiight." He chuckled. She reached out and smacked his arm.

"I no gwumpy!"

"Yeah, you're totally a morning person." She just groaned. He brushed her hair out of her face. The contact seemed to help wake her. Her eyes widened and she blinked several times.

"Haffa pee." He was about to move, but she climbed over him before he had the chance.

"You're awful cute when you're cranky." He called from the couch. She turned and blew a raspberry at him. "That's just adorable. And you call me the baby." He laughed when he heard a thump and a thud. "Did you bump something?"

"I'm okay. If you care." She called back. He just laughed louder.

When she came back out she was stretching her arms above her head. Her shirt came up and showed her belly button. Tony turned his eyes away, not wanting to get caught staring. She yawned and popped her neck.

"So," she asked. "Did you want breakfast or something?"

"Sure." He popped off the couch. "Whadda you got?" She suddenly glared at his smile.

"I hate chipper morning people." She mumbled, shuffling into the kitchen.

NCIS

It was late on a Friday night. Normally Tony would have cut out early but he didn't have any plans for the night. He was getting caught up on paper work so he wouldn't be stuck here longer on Monday. Ziva and McGee had gone home hours ago. Gibbs was still somewhere in the building. Tony knew this because Gibbs had not come back to get his gun and jacket yet.

"DiNozzo, it's Friday." Gibbs was suddenly standing in front of Tony. "Why are you still here?"

"No other plans." He went back to his computer.

"No date?" Gibbs sounded surprised. No one else knew it, but Gibbs knew Tony better than anyone. They actually did talk about their personal lives to each other. It had been a while since they'd had one of these personal conversations, but Gibbs knew enough to see something was upsetting Tony.

"Nah." Gibbs went to sit at his own desk.

"What about that girl you're seeing? Polly?"

"Piper. No, we're just friends."

"Friends who hang every Friday night." Tony's head came up. Damn, Gibbs was good.

"She has a date tonight."

"Oh." Gibbs opened his desk drawer and retrieved his gun and badge. "Well, I'll see you hopefully not till Monday." He pulled on his jacket and circled around his desk.

"Yeah, see ya boss." Tony sighed and glanced at the clock on his computer monitor. If everything was on schedule, Piper and her date would be just getting to the restaurant by now. Tony had laughed when she told him it was a movie and dinner date. How cliché. If this guy had made the effort to do a little research (like Tony had done) he would have known better than to plan such a boring date. Tony had watched enough movies with Piper to know she couldn't sit still for more than half an hour. It was why she preferred watching movies at home, not in a theatre. Watching her shift and fidget constantly was usually more entertaining than the movie itself. It was a good thing she and Tony were both the type to talk through the whole movie. Otherwise, one of them would have driven other insane. It was weird how well they fit together. But they weren't actually _together_. And now she was being courted by some other…

Tony's cell vibrating in his pocket brought him out of his musings.

"DiNozzo."

"Tony!" Piper's voice was hushed. "Thank God! You have to save me!"

"Why are you whispering?"

"I'm in the bathroom. Please come get me."

"What's wrong? Aren't you on a date?"

"Yes! That's the problem! He's driving me nuts!" Tony laughed. He found this hilarious but was so relieved at the same time. "This is not funny! We haven't even had our appetizer yet and I already wanna shove my fork in his eye!"

"What exactly do you want me to do?"

"Just get me out of here! You know where the Pasta Palace is?"

"Yeah."

"Good. Please come save me. I have to go, if I'm gone too long he'll come knock on the door."

"What?"

"Trust me, I went to pee at the movie. Apparently he felt the need to come look for me! He actually opened the restroom door and asked if I was okay!"

"Ew."

"Yeah I know, right. I gotta go." CLICK.

Tony got up from his desk smiling. This was going to be so much fun.

Piper fidgeted in her seat. Why had she agreed to go out with this creep? Oh yeah, she wanted to prove to Lexi that she wasn't scared to put herself out there. Grant Thanes had come into the bakery when Piper was having lunch with Lexi. He was picking up a cake for a friends party when Piper caught his eye. He struck up a conversation and before Piper knew what was going on, she had agreed to go out with him. She had refrained from giving him her phone number. She wanted to get to know him first. They had agreed to meet at the movie theatre and go from there.

When she told Tony about her date, he seemed excited for her. For some reason, this had bothered her. But when Lexi accused her of letting herself get too comfortable around Tony, and therefore shutting out other potential boyfriends, Piper had acted out of pure self defense. Now she was stuck with this… Asshole.

"Miss Brooks." Tony's voice made Piper look up. She almost smiled but the cold stare on Tony's face stopped her. Grant looked up too.

"Can I help you?" Grant demanded, rudely. Tony ignored him.

"You need to stand slowly and show me your hands." Tony moved his coat to the side to show them his badge. Piper did as she was told, fighting not to grin.

"What's this about?" Grant stood and nearly yelled.

"Sir, you need to stand back." Tony put one hand on his gun and held the other palm out. Grant immediately backed off. "Piper Brooks, you are under arrest." Tony whipped out his handcuffs and quickly turned Piper and cuffed her. Piper's eyes went wide. Then she decided that Tony wasn't going to have all the fun.

"That bastard got what he had coming." She spat out angrily. "I'm glad I did it!" Tony looked at her and fought to keep his composure.

"Thanks. A confession makes my job so much easier." Tony let his smile peek out just a little. "Next time you ask out a pretty girl," he said to Grant. "Make sure she doesn't have murder on her mind." She _had_ said something about a fork in the eye.

Once they were outside they both burst out laughing. They laughed all the way to Tony's car.

"Get these things off me." Piper almost couldn't speak, she was laughing so hard. "That was awesome!" Tony quickly let her out of the cuffs. "Thank you." She wrapped her free arms around him and squeezed. He hugged her back, still laughing with her. The _Cotton Blossom _scent invaded his nose. When he pulled away, he finally got a good look at her. She was wearing a modest, but pretty, short sleeved black dress. He let her in the passenger side of his car. Once he was in and had the engine started, he asked where she wanted to go.

"Well, I never actually got to have my dinner." She said. "You hungry?"

"Yeah."

"Well, since you saved me, I'll but you dinner where ever you wanna go."

"Deal!"

After a fun dinner at the Waffle House… Yes, Tony had picked the Waffle House… They found themselves back at Piper's apartment. They had just gotten to her front door when she pulled her keys out.

"You wanna come in?" She asked, unlocking the door.

"Sure."

Tony went straight for the fridge. He had left two beers in there on his last visit. He pulled one out and turned to find Piper gone. He could hear shuffling in her room behind the closed door. He made himself comfortable on her couch and flipped on the T.V. When Piper came back out she was dressed in jeans and an oversized Penn State shirt. Her hair was still up in the braided bun she had worn on her date. She sat down and began unsnarling the dressy hairdo.

"Amelia is gonna die for this." She grinned at Tony. "She insisted on doing my hair. I can't even see this to undo it."

"Want some help?"

"Yeah. Just try not to pull on it. I'm kinda tender-headed." She twisted around so her back was to him. She barely felt a thing as he expertly untwisted the tiny braids.

"So, what was so weird about your date, other than the obvious?" He asked while he worked her hair.

"He was just rude to everyone! I hate rude people. He nearly made the ticket person at the movie cry. And the poor concession girl was next. Then, through the whole movie he kept trying to cop a feel. I don't like a guy to be quite that bold. I usually wait and make the second move, but this guy was a little too eager to make the first one."

"This guy is really starting to piss me off." Tony felt protective of Piper. It had come out for a second when he knew she felt uncomfortable around McCadden. Now, it was boiling through him.

"He was pissing me off too. Just to get away from him I stayed in the restroom for a while."

"And he came looking for you?"

"I got the feeling he had been date ditched before." She chuckled. "By the time we got to the restaurant, I was already planning on calling you to rescue me. Thank you so much by the way!"

"Any time." He was on the last braid.

"That was so much fun too! The look on his face when you said I was gonna murder him…"

"Actually, _you_ said that. Fork in the eye, remember."

"He could have lived through that." She shook her hair out and turned to him. His hand was full of tiny hair bands. He looked at her messy hair and laughed. "What?"

"You're just channeling the bride of Frankenstein right now, that's all."

"Ah!" She grabbed the hair bands and ran to the bathroom. He heard her groan and knew she had just looked in the mirror. This only made him laugh more.


	3. Chapter 3

The next afternoon, Tony found himself craving some quality Piper time. He called her cell and got no answer. This meant she was at her studio working. He had only been there once to pick her up for lunch. Her studio was the top floor of an ugly office building in the middle of D.C. Her office space had roof access and she often used it for outdoor shots.

When he stepped off the elevator he was met with that horrible alternative rock crap that Piper liked. He grimaced at the sound. He'd take Abby's music over that anytime. As he circled around the various screens set up and all with light rigging scattered about, he could hear Piper yelling over the music.

"What are you doing?" She was yelling. She had her camera in one hand and the other hand on her hip. "You look weird. Are you holding your breath?" There were three models standing just in front of a blue screen. They were dressed in short, summer dresses. One of them came out of her pose and glared at Piper.

"I have a pooch. I need to suck in my belly." She argued with Piper in a thick accent.

"Sweetie, I can Photoshop the pooch. I can't Photoshop the weird expression on your face. Breath!" The model glared but went back into her pose. Tony chuckled to himself. One thing that he loved about Piper was how she wasn't afraid to let a high paid model have a piece of her mind. Piper took several more shots before she called it quits. When she turned around and saw Tony she threw her hands up and smiled.

"Rough day?" He asked teasingly.

"Not if you don't mind working with single digit IQ's." They both turned to see the "poochy" model pulling out a bag of carrot sticks. Piper laughed and looked back at Tony. "You know the greatest thing about being behind the camera? I get to eat whatever I want." Tony laughed with her.

"Speaking of which, I came to see if you wanna have lunch." Piper's face dropped for a second. She closed her eyes and groaned.

"I'm sorry you came all this way…"

"You have plans?" He asked.

"I was gonna go see my mom. I brought lunch here so I could eat before I leave." She sighed. "I'm sorry."

"That's okay."

"We can get a drive-thru lunch really quick if you want." She brightened.

"Sure." He shrugged.

"Alright, let me get these people out of here and we can go."

Tony waited patiently while Piper closed up her studio. When they made it to the parking lot, Piper offered to drive them. One greasy fast-food meal later and Piper was heading back to the studio. Half-way there, she pulled over in front of a store.

"Do you wanna come with me?" She asked

"Where?"

"To see my mom."

"Yeah, sure." He didn't hesitate. She smiled as she got back out onto the road and headed to Georgetown.

"You should know… When I said my mom is sick. She's not sick so much as… Just different." Tony quirked an eyebrow. "She was in a really bad accident and it left her… She has all her memories and everything but… Well, she basically has the mind of a child."

"Oh." Was all he could say.

"I used to take care of her. But after the third time she set my kitchen on fire, her doctors insisted I put her in an assisted living home. I couldn't be there 24/7. I actually lost a few friends over that."

"What?" Tony felt anger shoot through him.

"Yeah. Some people just didn't agree with my decision."

"But it wasn't _their_ decision, therefore none of _their_ damn business."

"I agree. I know I didn't just give up on her and hide her away. That's what they said I did. But I'm not ashamed of my mom. My real friends know this. She's with good people who can care for her."

"You made the right call. Screw those other people." Tony shook his head and tried to calm down. "What about your dad?"

"He's never been in the picture." She shrugged. Daddy issues, this explained some things.

"So Amelia and Lexi, they know about your mom?"

"Oh yeah, everyone does. Well, _now_ everyone does."

"What do they think about your decision?"

"They agree with you."

"Good."

"I should also warn you, my mom is… Flirty sometimes."

"Like how?"

"Don't turn your back on her. She gets kinda grabby."

"Oh. So she takes after you in the butt fetish."

"How do you know I have a…" She blushed.

"You stare." He smirked.

The assisted living home was less hospital and more homey than Tony expected. Piper led him to a room on the third floor. The walls were covered in snapshots. Piper young and older was smiling down at him from everywhere. The small bed was up against the far wall. There was a loveseat on the other wall. Piper turned around.

"She might be in the rec room." She thought for a second. "Probably the library." The library was on the first floor. As soon as they walked in, Tony saw a woman hunched over a coloring book. She was looking through a box of crayons and sitting at small square table. She had long hair the same shade as Piper's. "Hey, Momma." The woman's head came up. She had Piper's smile too. Piper bent down and wrapped a hug around her. "How are you?"

"I'm coloring." She sounded like it was the most fun she'd ever had.

"Wow, you're almost done with that whole book. I'm gonna have to bring you another one soon."

"I like these. Lisa Frank is pretty." The older woman's eyes slid to Tony. She stared openly for several seconds before turning back to Piper.

"Momma, this is my very good friend, Tony." Tony stepped forward and reached out a hand. "Tony, meet Maggie, my mom."

"It's very nice to meet you ma'am." He smiled warmly.

"Oh." The woman ran a nervous hand through her hair. "I'm not pretty for visitors." Tony let his arm drop.

"Momma, you look beautiful." Piper kissed the top of her mom's head. Tony glanced down at the coloring book. He was slightly surprised at how neatly she colored. Piper sat down beside her mom. Tony took the chair across from them.

Watching Piper interact with her mom made Tony start wishing he had known his own mother better. For over two hours Tony sat there, chatting and joking with them. Piper showed her pictures on her phone. They talked about her upcoming photo exhibit. Piper told her the story about the creepy date that Tony rescued her from. Tony told Maggie about Piper telling off a model earlier that day. Maggie Brooks didn't seem so much brain damaged, she just saw things in her own child-like way. It was almost like she was the daughter and Piper was the mother. By the time they were leaving Tony had developed an even deeper respect for Piper.

Piper took them back to her studio so Tony could get his car. They both decided to go back to her place and hang out. They sat on the couch just chatting and half-watching whatever made for T.V. movie Tony had turned on. After another hour, Tony was getting hungry again. Just as he was about to ask what kind of take out they should order, Piper surprised him.

"Do you like baked chicken?" She asked.

"Uh, yeah."

"I just got this new oven thingy that's supposed to bake frozen chicken in like fifteen minutes. I actually went out and bought groceries the other day. But it felt stupid to make a whole meal just for me." She got up and went to the kitchen. "It's cool though, you can put your chicken and your side dishes in it and cook the whole thing."

"You cook?"

"Well, I thought I should start again eventually. I don't want to live on take out for forever." She started pulling things out and setting up. "I used to cook for me and mom all the time." She paused. "Do you like those little whole white potatoes? I thought I'd do that with some peas or something…"

"That sound great."

"And we have dessert too. Lexi made me one of her orange velvet pop-rock cakes."

"Pop-rock?"

"Yeah, instead of sprinkles on the frosting, she uses pop-rocks. It's actually pretty good."

"Ah." Tony sat at the barstool and watched her cook. She kept talking the whole time and Tony started to get the feeling that she was nervous about something. He didn't bring it up when they were both seated at the bar, eating. She continued her endless stream of chatter in between bites of food. She was eating and talking so fast that she quickly cleared her whole plate. "This is really good." Tony finally interrupted her. "You should definitely cook more often." She stared at him, for several seconds before replying.

"Thanks." She quickly cleared away their plates.

"Is something bothering you?"

"Why would something be bothering me?" She sat back in the stool beside him.

"You answered a question with a question."

"So?"

"So, you only do that when you're dodging something." She glanced away for a second then looked back at him.

"Okay, way to call me out. Yeah, there's something bothering me."

"And that would be…?"

"I never asked you why… And now I wanna know. After today… I need to know." She turned on the stool to face him. Her knees almost touched his leg.

"Why what?"

"Why did you need to be my friend?" The way she blurted it out told him it had been building for a while. He stood and pulled her off the stool. He knew this talk had been coming. He'd even rehearsed parts of it. He knew what he wanted to say and he didn't want to sound stupid while saying it. Leading her to the couch he sat down. When she sat beside him, he was still holding her wrist. He let go, but she didn't pull herself away from him.

"I've made too many mistakes in my life. And getting to know you better only showed me that you were probably one of the biggest ones. I don't know anyone like you. I hate myself for letting you slide out of my life the first time. I got hurt, more than once, after I hurt you. It never stopped me from being the ass that you knew me as… But it did damage my faith in people. And I guess, when you don't trust anyone, it gets easier to be an ass. But then you, you were willing to put faith in me. Suddenly my excuse was gone…" That was it for the rehearsed lines. "That night at the grill, when you reminded me of what I did… I've never hated myself quite that much. I wanted to kick myself. And I thought that if I could find at least one person to make things right with. Maybe if I could redeem myself in someone else's eyes, that I could…" How could he explain this?

"You could like yourself a little more?" She added for him.

"Or at least be able to look myself in the mirror, yeah. That sounds really self-serving but… I wanted to heal something in _both_ of us. I wanted to make you feel better too. The more I got to know you, the more I wanted you to like me. I don't really know how else to explain it." He paused. "Does that answer your question?"

"It helps."

"You said 'after today' you needed to know why. Why after today? Because I met your mom?"

"No, I was planning on introducing you for a while now. But it was the way you were with her. Most people, when they first meet her, it's weird for them. They don't really know how to act. But you… Well, you just seemed so comfortable. I don't know if it was just an act."

"It wasn't an act. Your mom is actually pretty cool. You have a lot of her in you. You're both, spunky"

"Thank you." Her smile broke the tension. Then she rolled her eyes and groaned.

"What now?" He asked.

"I just remembered, I left my camera at the studio and I have to have those slides done by Monday morning."

"So, you have all day tomorrow to do it."

"Why can't I do them tonight?"

"Because I need my quality Piper time!"

"Is _that_ what you call it?"

"Yes!"

"You're so needy. Like a baby." She twirled her index finger at him.

"I am not a baby!" He swatted her hand away.

"You sure do whine like one." His mouth fell open. "Baaaby." She twirled her finger again. He went to grab for her hand but she stood up. "Baaaby." She teased again.

"Piper, there's something I've never told you. You might say I've been saving it for just the right moment."

"What's that?" She smiled and set her hand on her hips.

"Amelia told me where your ticklish spot is."

"Huh?" She gasped.

She dropped her arms and her eyes went wide. Just as she took a step back, he slowly rose off the couch. She squealed when he jumped at her. As quickly as she could, she dashed for her bedroom. He was right behind her. The next second, he was hefting her up and throwing her onto the bed. He rolled on top of her, pinning her down. She wildly tried to grab his hands but he went straight for her sides, just below her ribs. The tickling sensation zapped her self control and all she could do was squirm under his assault.

"Please." She pleaded breathlessly. "Please stop. Please."

"Are you gonna call me a baby?" His mouth was right next to her cheek.

"No, no, no, never again. I promise. I promise."

"Are you sure?" He stopped tickling but grabbed her wrists and held her.

"Yes, I'm sure. I promise, I'm sure. I'm so sure." She was still laughing.

"Now, I think you owe me an apology."

"What?" Her laughter suddenly stopped and she looked at him like he was crazy. His eyes went wide and he started tickling her again. "Okay, okay, okay! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" He stopped tickling her and fell forward, laughing. He had one leg over her and one arm sprawled across her waist. She made no move to shove him away.

He propped up on his elbow and looked down at her. He used his other hand to push her hair out of her face. He traced his fingers across her flushed cheek. She closed her eyes and moaned at his touch. Then his face was just above hers. Their lips touched. He heard a small gasp but didn't know if it was him or her. He could feel her lips trembling against his. Tiny electric currents whizzed up and down his body. She moaned again. He felt her hand slide to the back of his head. She wanted this. He suddenly found himself pulling back. She looked up at him in confusion.

"Piper, I…"

"What? What's wrong?" Now her hands were on his face.

"I didn't plan that." Her hands dropped away from him.

"Oh, I see." He let her push him away. Wait, why was she getting up? She rolled off the side of the bed and stood up. Tony quickly stood in front of her, not letting her leave the room.

"Wait, you didn't let me finish."

"Okay." She couldn't look at him.

"I didn't plan that. But I wanted it." Her eyes shot to his face. "I didn't even know how bad I wanted it, till I did it. You wanted it too. I could feel it. I just didn't want you to think… That it was all I wanted."

"What _do_ you want, Tony?" He closed the space between them.

"Let me show you." He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. "Let me show you everything." He kissed her harder.

They were back on the bed in a second. Piper crawled up until her hips met his. She dug her fingers into the sheets beneath her. She hadn't been with many men. But she knew she had a tendency to be an aggressive lover and she wasn't sure Tony would appreciate having claw marks all over him. Letting him dominate her with his kissing, she resisted the urge to lean down and bite at his neck and shoulders. It almost scared her to realize how hard she had to fight to _not_ rip his clothes off. She pushed against his chest and lifted up.

"No sex." She was really talking to herself. "We are not having sex." When she looked down at him, he was nodding.

"Okay, no sex." He agreed. She smiled and took possession of his mouth with hers. She broke the kiss only long enough to remove her shirt. His warm hands slid up and down her back. When his fingertips brushed her ticklish spots she shivered. "Mmmhh." He moaned into her mouth when her shivering caused her hips to push against his erection. Even through both of their jeans, she could feel how hard he was. She purposely ground her hips against him. "If there's no sex, you might not want to do that." His voice was husky in her ear. His hot breath against her cheek made her squirm even more.

"Can't help…" She balled her hands into fists. He grinned up at her. Then her back was against the sheets and he was hovering above her.

"Better?" He looked down at her and smiled.

"As long as your self control is stronger than mine." She giggled.

He nodded before leaning down to resume the intense kissing. She let her arms fall to her sides, not trusting what her hands might do. The room seemed to spin around her as his tongue expertly massaged hers. Before she could make her hands listen to her brain, she was pulling his shirt off. As soon as her hands touched his bare skin she had to pull back. Her body exploded with pleasure when his tongue worked its way down her neck and back up to her ear. He nipped at her earlobe and sucked the skin just below it. Her treacherous hands were back on him. She ran her fingers up and down his chest. He grunted when she ran her thumbs over his nipples. The sound lit a spark inside her and she had to remember it had been a while since she had clipped her fingernails. She made her hands go flat against his chest. He moved his kissing back to her mouth and she was able to gain a little control back.

But then his hand started roaming around. First, he revisited her ticklish spot. Her body convulsed unwillingly. She gripped the sheets with both hands. Then he was squeezing her butt and oh, it felt good! He caressed her thigh and barely grazed between her legs. Then he was tracing circles on her stomach. His hand moved up her body and cupped her right breast. The thin satin of her bra did very little to hide her hard nipple. He gently squeezed and massaged her through the fabric. One finger slipped under the bra and grazed her nipple. She didn't even know her hands had moved again until she heard a zipper being pulled. The sound made both of them stop.

"Do you need me to stop kissing you, so you'll stop undressing us before we're naked?" His voice was teasing, but she knew he'd stop if she asked. It took her a second to realize that it was her own zipper she had just undone. She looked up at him. Her chest was heaving. Her eyes were out of focus. Her hands were clutching at the sheets again. He could take her right now and she wouldn't stop him. They both knew it.

"I want this." She almost begged.

"I know." He pulled away from her and laid on his side. "I want it too." He let one hand stay on her cheek. "But I don't want you to wake up tomorrow and question it." She rolled on her side to face him.

"This isn't just tonight then?"

"No. It was never going to be just tonight." She smiled and snuggled closer to him. His arm wrapped around her when she set her head on his chest. He started rubbing his fingers across the back of her neck.

"There's something I have to ask." She spoke up after a few minutes of silence. Her fingers were lazily caressing his stomach.

"Yeah?"

"How did you manage to get Amelia to tell you my ticklish spot?" He chuckled.

"I went over to the bakery to ask for your number, before I called you that first night. I told Amelia why I wanted to try to be friends with you. After getting threats from _everyone_ there, I got the number. But I had to give Amelia my number. Since then, she has been demanding updates on our friendship. And for some reason, she's been giving me advice. McGee said she did the same thing to him when he started dating Lexi. He said it means she likes me. It was right after that when he stopped giving me so much grief."

"So, the rollerblading, the concert tickets, the theme park, taking me snorkeling, and all the movie nights, that was all her prompting?"

"Actually, the snorkeling was my idea. She wanted me to take you bungee jumping."

"I've been bungee jumping. It's fun. But that does not explain why she told you my ticklish spot."

"I dunno. She just texted me one day and all she said was, tickle her on her sides just below her ribs." He chuckled again. "Maybe she was trying to get me in trouble."

"No, she wasn't."

"How do you know?"

"She's one of the few people I've told that tickling me there is a turn on."

"Oh really? Yeah, why _would_ she tell me that?"

"Well, Amelia does tend to know things before everyone else. Maybe she foresaw this or something."

"You'd think she'd have been nice enough to warn us. I would have dressed better." Piper laughed and her body shook against him.

"I really doubt it would have mattered." She let her arm slide across his chest and lay there. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"Shoving your foot in my door that night."

"Thank you for not calling the cops." He laughed. "But if I take you out to eat and McGee shows up and arrests you…"

"Nah, if anything I'd just call Caddy."

"Oh, come on!" He gently tapped her head with his hand. The he went back to rubbing her neck. "Time for you to confess."

"Huh?" She shifted her head to look at him.

"I kinda caught on that you like being rough… Were you holding back?" Her blush answered his question. "Ah ha, I'm right."

"I… I didn't know if you like… Do you?"

"I kinda like aggressive. As long as I can walk the next day." He smirked when her blush deepened. She set her head on his shoulder and snuggled. Tony slid one hand under his head and looked at the ceiling. He had a very good feeling that things would only get better and more interesting from here.

NCIS

The next morning Tony woke up with a note taped to his forehead. He pulled it off and looked around.

"Piper?" He called out. No answer. He unfolded the note and read.

**Tony, ran to my studio to get my camera. Bringing back breakfast. Luv, Piper**

Smiling, he made his way into the bathroom with a hot shower on his mind. When he opened the bathroom door he found another note taped to the mirror.

**Saved this from my New York trip. All yours.**

On the counter was a clean folded towel, wash rag and a simple white toothbrush still in the wrapper. There was also a tiny bar of hotel soap and little bottles of shampoo and conditioner. It all said _Hilton Inn_.

"Ooh, she left me the good stuff." He said to himself.

Just as Tony was stepping out of the shower and wrapping the towel around his waist, he heard the front door open and shut. He rushed out to the front room and saw Piper setting her stuff on the counter. He could smell the fresh coffee as he got closer. Piper turned and her eyes sparked when she saw him.

"Wow, you're all clean and… Wet." He kept one hand securely on the towel as he leaned in to kiss her. The dangerous glint in her eye was giving her away. When he pulled back, she was still gawking at him.

"What's for breakfast?" He asked. She blinked and shook her head.

"Uh, danish." She blinked again and pointed to a paper bag. "You will never guess who I ran into at the coffee shop."

"The Foul Caddy?" She shook her head. "Not the horrible date I rescued you from?" Another head shake. "Who?"

"Your coworker, Ziva."

"Really? How'd that go?"

"All I said was hello and she said that if I hurt you, I'll have to answer to her fists."

"Well, that does sound like her but… Whoa."

"Yeah, and when I asked what she was talking about… She said she could _smell_ you on me. And I totally showered this morning. Ziva's the trained assassin right?"

"Yup." He opened the paper bag and peeked in.

"Well, I really feel like I'm on her good side." She grinned. "Hey, if you wanna run your clothes through the wash, I have a robe you can borrow. Um, but it has flowers on it."

"If it means more quality Piper time, I'll take it." Piper laughed.

It was another twenty minutes before the temptation building up in Piper finally reached its boiling point. She was at her desk, working mostly on auto-pilot. Tony had gotten up to switch his clothes to the dyer. When he sat back down on the barstool beside her she turned in her chair to face him.

"We need to have that awkward conversation." Tony knew that when she blurted things out in that tone, it meant she was nervous about his reaction.

"What awkward conversation are you referring to?" He tried to keep things light.

"The one where one of us asks the other the dreaded 'where do we go from here' question."

"Oh, that one." He sighed. "Well, where would you like to go from here?"

"I don't want to be friends with benefits."

"Yeah, I hated that movie."

"Tony…"

"I'm sorry, we're being serious right now. Okay, I don't want to be friends at all. I think we're past that. I'm gonna warn you, I suck at relationships. But I wanna try. I don't want this to be a fling."

"I really hope you're not just saying what I want to hear."

"Well, I asked you for a chance to be friends. That worked out way better than I thought it would." He paused for a second. "Will you give a relationship with me a chance?"

"I will, but I have one condition."

"Okay…"

"Don't cheat on me. If it comes down to that, just end things first."

"You've been cheated on before?" Even considering how he had hurt her, the thought of someone else doing it still pissed him off.

"And it hurt like hell."

"Well then, will you do something for me?"

"Yes."

"Don't hold back. If you're mad, tell me. If something bothers you, let me know. And be sure to call me out on all my B.S."

"Do I not do that now?"

"You're pretty good at calling me on my B.S. But I'm pretty good at reading people. And I've detected more than once that something has pissed you off. I just wanna make sure it's not me."

"If it is, I will let you know." She grinned.

"Thus endith the awkward conversation?" He smiled.

"Except to tell you that you look adorable in that frilly little robe."

"I know what you're doing! You're trying to provoke me into taking this thing off so you can see me naked!"

"Damn, you caught me!"

"Get back to work, you!" He pointed at her computer. She laughed and turned back to her screen.

NCIS

When Monday morning rolled around Tony wasn't sure what to expect when he stepped off the elevator. There was not doubt in his mind that Piper had already called Amelia and told her everything. So by now, the entire bakery group knew. Which of course meant that McGee knew too. Tony sighed as he rounded the bullpen and made eye contact with McGee. Yup, he knew…

"Morning, Tony." McGee sounded on edge.

"Morning." Tony set his bag down and plopped down in his chair. Ziva came in and saved Tony from further interrogation by asking McGee something about her computer. Tony signed into his email and saw two new messages. One was spam, one was from Piper. He smiled as he clicked on her email.

**From: Piperpics99**

**Hope it's not too early to be sending you fan mail. Wouldn't want to seem like a clingy girlfriend. Haha. You were right though, Amelia totally did see this coming. And by now, I'm guessing everyone knows. So beware work today. And call me later if you find yourself in need of quality Piper time. **

Tony chuckled at the email. At least she tried to warn him. Knowing he had at least a few minutes before Gibbs walked by, he quickly sent a reply.

**To: Piperpics99**

**First of all, I would never call you clingy. I value my life. Second, yes, everyone knows. I am totally okay with this. Third, I will be needing my quality Piper time soon. I will be by Wednesday night with a movie and food. Fourth, you can send me fan mail anytime! Fifth, I hope you're smiling right now, cause I am.**

Just as he sent the email, Gibbs of course, walked by.

It was another three hours before McGee cornered him just outside of the break room. Tony had escaped to get some caffeine and didn't realize he had been followed.

"So how long before you ditch her this time?" Tony rolled his eyes as he turned. McGee was standing there with his arms crossed.

"I don't plan on ditching her at all." Tony tried to keep his cool. But McGee's attitude was getting old.

"Unlike last time, when you actually _did_ plan it."

"You know what. I am totally done defending myself. What happens between me and Piper is no one else's business. And if it bothers you this much, just remember that you only have yourself to blame."

"Excuse me?"

"Hey, you were the one who picked me to be her date. You could have asked anyone else." Tony walked away before McGee could reply.

Meanwhile in the front lobby of _Crafted Confections_, Piper found herself the target of an intervention. She had been asked over for a friendly 'girl lunch' by Amelia. Little did she know, Lexi, Amelia, newlywed Stacy, and front counter girl Lulu, had all gathered for more than just lunch.

They were all seated at one of the tables in the front when Piper walked in. Lunch started off normally enough. But then Lexi, the impatient one, spouted off about Tony.

"You know, Tim did warn me that Tony is a player. Maybe you should put the brakes on."

"Whoa, hold on chica." Amelia interrupted. "Piper's love life is _her_ love life." Piper smiled thankfully at Amelia.

"That's funny coming from you." Lexi rebutted.

"Scuse me?" Amelia's eyebrows went up in that terrifying 'gonna slap someone' way.

"Oh come on, you interfere in more people's love lives than anyone I've ever known!"

"And when have I EVER been wrong?" Lexi opened her mouth to argue again, then slapped it shut. "Exactly!"

"Can I speak?" Lulu raised her hand. Everyone looked at her. "This guy went out of his way to be Piper's friend. Then he went the extra mile of actually being a _good_ friend. Then he turned down a chance to take full advantage of your uber-horniness." Piper's eyes widened. "Oh, come on, we all know how long it's been." Piper blushed. She really needed to stop telling her friends _everything_. "Now, he's facing the music at work with Lexi's overprotective boyfriend. And he _still_ wants to make it work. Does that spell 'player' to you?"

"She has a point." Stacy put in. "Pete was a player until I tamed him." She smiled, thinking of her husband.

"Okay, but, who says Tony has been tamed." Lexi directed her question at Piper.

"Who says I want him tamed?" They all gawked at her. "I like him just the way he is. He isn't Prince Charming or Mr. Perfect, but so far he's racked up more brownie points than any other guy I've ever dated."

"And how many other guys do you know that would sacrifice a Friday night to fake arrest you just to save you from a bad date?" Lulu added.

"Tim would!" Lexi said defensively.

"You're not just baiting for him to screw up, so you can break it off are you?" Amelia asked suspiciously. "I know you had a big 'I told you so' speech all worked out. Are you just waiting to prove to everyone he's an ass?"

"No, I'm way done waiting for that. I'm done waiting, period. If it works out, great, if not, I tried. At least I know I gave it a shot. I'm tired of waiting for something good to happen but keeping my guard up at the same time. I'm happy right now. And if it only lasts till next week, at least I can be happy for a little while instead of not at all. Tony actually is a decent guy once you get past all the B.S. he puts out. And it's been a while since I spent time with a guy I feel _that_ comfortable with. I like being with him. That's all I care about right now."

"You sound like a greeting card." Amelia couldn't help but laugh as she said this.

"A mushy, gooey, greeting card." Lulu grimaced..

"So is the intervention over now?" Piper looked at Lexi.

"For now." Lexi smirked.

"Are you going to transcribe this conversation and give a copy to Tim?" Amelia asked.

"I'll let you do it. You're the evil matchmaker." Lexi said before heading back to the kitchen.

"Evil matchmaker? I like this title." Amelia smiled mischievously. She pulled her phone out and turned away from the table.

Back at the Navy yard.

Tony looked up from his work when he heard McGee's phone chime. McGee pulled it out and looked at the screen. Tony saw his eyes widen in surprise. Then they narrowed in suspicion. Finally, McGee's eyes came up and connected with Tony's.

"I don't wanna know." Tony shook his head at McGee and went back to work.

"I wasn't going to tell you." McGee shot back. Ziva sighed loudly and rolled her eyes.

NCIS

As promised, Tony showed up outside Piper's door Wednesday night, with food and a movie. He tapped the door with his foot and waited.

"What did you bring?" Piper asked as soon as she opened the door. She hadn't moved so he could step in.

"Only the best BBQ in town." He smirked.

"And the movie?"

"Chick flick. Some romantic comedy about two people who are perfect for each other but refuse to see it."

"Do you _want_ me to slam this door in your face?"

"I'm kidding! I brought "The Presidio." It's a good Sean Connery flick." She finally let him in.

"And I hear Mark Harmon gets totally naked in it." She giggled as he set the food on the coffee table.

"Did you invite me in just to see Mark Harmon naked?"

"It's been a while since I've seen a good looking naked man." She held up her arms in a shrug and smiled.

"Oh, I can fix that really quick!" He made like he was going to pull his shirt off. Piper reached out and grabbed the DVD.

"I plan on fixing it as soon as I put the DVD in. I know just what scene he shows off his body in." Tony's jaw dropped. Piper had to put her hand on the wall to keep from falling to the floor laughing. "You should see your face!" She gasped out between laughs. When he put his hands on his hips, her laughter subsided into small giggles.

"I will get you back for this."

"I can't wait."

Ten minutes in to the movie, Piper was already getting squirmy. Tony decided to have some fun and started a game of tickle-tag. By the time they were both out of breath from wrestling around and tickling each other, Tony was on the floor with Piper on top of him. They were between the coffee table and the couch. Tony still had his hands on her sides. Her own hands were flat against Tony's chest, holding her up.

"I told you I'd get you back." He said quietly.

"You're the one on the floor."

"Yes, but this position has very good tactical advantage."

"What's that?" He grabbed her wrists and pulled her arms so she fell. Her chest collided with his and he quickly wrapped his arms around her back to hold her in place.

"I can do that." She shivered when his breath hit her ear as he spoke. Deciding to get her own payback, Piper nuzzled her face against his neck and bit down. "Ah!" She smiled against his skin and bit him again. She moved to his ear and caught the tip of his earlobe in her mouth. Just when she started rubbing against his hips, she felt a very weird sensation.

"Is that your cell phone or… I don't really wanna consider what else it could be." She pushed herself off of him and sat up on the couch. Tony grunted and pulled out his phone.

"Yeah, DiNozzo." He climbed up onto the couch beside Piper. "Right now?" He sounded annoyed. He sighed and sent Piper a defeated look. "Got it." He slapped the phone shut. "I have to go."

"Work?"

"It's the only thing that could pull me away." He closed in and kissed her lips. "But I'm taking that DVD with me." He grinned playfully.

"Why?"

"I don't trust you alone with a naked Mark Harmon."

She was still laughing when he left the apartment.

NCIS

The following Friday…

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Tim leaned in and whispered to Lexi. The group gathered in her living room was settling around the T.V.

"Yes. It will be a nice observation opportunity. I want to see how Tony treats her."

"Well, yeah but… If you or Amelia end up murdering him, there will be a lot of witnesses." Tim looked into the living room. Piper and Tony were cuddled up on a large bean bag chair on the floor. Right behind them, Amelia and Gavin were curled up on one side of the couch. Ziva and Lulu had taken the loveseat. Lulu was trying to get Ziva to agree to go out on a 'girl date' with her and the other girls. Stacy and her husband Pete were sprawled out on a blanket in front of the loveseat.

"Do you think any of them will mind?"

"Eh, good point." Tim and Lexi both carried two bowls of popcorn into the living room.

"What are we watching?" Piper asked as she took one bowl from Lexi.

"Casablanca." Lexi barely got the whole word out before Tony started spewing lines from the movie.

"Scuse me!" Amelia's annoyed voice brought Tony to a halt. He slowly turned his head and looked at her. "Some of us haven't seen this!" Tony looked back at Piper. Piper shook her head, warning him to shut his mouth.

Lexi clicked the remote and the quickly fast-forwarded through the previews. The opening credits began to roll and Lulu grunted loudly.

"What?" Lexi asked.

"Is this whole thing in black and white?"

"Uh, yeah!" Tony's head popped up. Piper tried to hold him down. "Of course it's in black and white. All the greatest films are in black and white. Just because it's not in color doesn't mean it's not worth watching." Piper had turned her head and was watching Amelia closely. She tried shaking Tony's shoulder when Amelia's glare went from annoyed, to seriously agitated, to gonna slap someone. But Tony didn't seem to notice. "You know, that's what's wrong with people these days. They can't enjoy a good classic." Piper grabbed the back of Tony's neck with one hand and clamped the other over his mouth.

"The movie is starting." She said quietly into his ear. "Shush." Tony nodded his head and she let him go.

"You know…" Amelia leaned down. "There is a very special circle of hell for people who talk during the movie."

"Hey, a Firefly reference. I loved that show." Tony twisted around and smiled. "I'm not usually a Joss Whedon fan but that one was actually."

"A _very_ _special_ hell." Amelia interrupted him. Tony snapped his mouth shut and turned around.

Tony lasted another ten minutes before he started fidgeting. First, he just cuddled with Piper and ran his hand through her hair. He felt like a teenager on a group date. It filled him with a silly giddiness. The giddy high made him even more restless. He decided to have some fun and started teasing Piper's ticklish spot. Piper desperately tried not to laugh, which only made Tony want to tickle her more. Finally, Piper elbowed him in the ribs.

"Oooh." Tony squealed. "Was that necessary?" She just glared at him. "Shutting up now."

But 'now' didn't last very long. Tony had spouted off his fifth Humphrey Bogart quote when Piper turned her head and saw Amelia reaching out towards Tony's head. Her fingers were curved into claws and her face was red with anger. Piper strategically leaned away from Tony. If he was about to be attacked, she didn't want to be caught in the crossfire. She knew she should probably warn Tony, but she had already given him three warnings… He was on his own now.

THWACK! THWACK!

Amelia head-slapped Tony with her open palm and followed through with a back-hand. The entire room quieted immediately.

"McGee?" Tony's voice was strained.

"Yeah, Tony?" Tim was trying not to laugh.

"Is Gibbs behind me, or did I just get smacked by a pregnant woman?"

THWACK!

"Pregnant woman." Tim confirmed.

"Ouch." Ziva smarted off.

"That was way more entertaining than the movie." Lexi whispered to Tim. Tim nodded in agreement. They both leaned back when Amelia shot a glare at them.


	4. Chapter 4

The little bell above the door to the bakery jingled as the door was pushed open. Piper and Amelia were sitting in the lobby with their backs to the door. Both women ignored the jingling bell. Lulu was working front counter and would take care of whoever needed help.

"I don't see why Lexi has such a grudge against Tony." Piper carried on with their conversation. The lobby was full of kids coming in from their Friday afternoon little league game, so she had to speak a little louder than normal.

"She's letting Tim influence her. She hasn't spent enough time with Tony to form her own opinion, so she just accepts whatever Tim tells her."

"And Tim keeps putting it in her head that Tony is gonna hurt me." Piper shook her head. "Remind me again why we are doing Lexi any favors?"

"Because we love her."

"Oh, yeah… That." Piper sighed. "I just really hope Tim isn't turning out to be another control freak. That's the last thing Lexi needs. You know how impressionable she is. No offense, but it would be easy for someone to take advantage…"

"He's not like that. I wouldn't allow it." Piper laughed at Amelia's serious face. "How are things with your man? Did he learn his lesson about not heeding your warnings about me, yet?"

"I seriously doubt it." Piper laughed again. "Tony isn't exactly a quick leaner with some things."

"He will learn to fear me. They all do in the end." Her eyes narrowed playfully.

"Should I give him another warning when I see him tonight? You're wearing your 'plotting' face."

"No! I wanna surprise him!"

"So what time do you want me here tomorrow?"

"Tim's picking Lexi up at eight-thirty. I, for some insane reason, agreed to close up the kitchen which includes boxing up fifteen pies for a big sale on Monday. So the earlier you can get here, the better. Mitch is gone at some anime convention for the weekend. Gavin has to be on base all day. He can't come get me till after nine."

"I can honestly say, I would not sacrifice my Saturday night to box pies for anyone but you."

"Ahh, you do love me!" Amelia reached up and head-patted Piper.

The door bell jingled again. Everyone ignored it.

NCIS

Grant Thanes glared across the restaurant. He had followed Piper all day, trying to work out how to confront her. Their first, and only, date hadn't ended at all how he had hoped. At first he had been relieved. The thought that his date had possibly killed her last lover… He was glad she had been arrested. But then he had spotted her two days later, laughing and smiling with her friends. Grant had a friend help him do a little digging and found out that Piper Brooks had never been wanted for any crime, let alone murder.

He had been date-ditched, _**again**_.

Grant was a Marine. He was a grown man. No woman had any right to humiliate him like that. This time, he was damn well going to do something about it. Now, watching her laugh and flirt with the man across from her, Grant felt a new rage boil inside him. She was on a date with the same guy who had pretended to arrest her! Bet they'd had one hell of a laugh over that. Was she into some kind of kink? Did she go on dates so she could be fake-arrested and then play at seducing the cop who arrested her? What kind of sick game had she played with him? How many other guys had she put through this?

He would get to her tomorrow night. His earlier trip to the bakery where he had first met her, had paid off. He had over heard her plans to be there late the next night. It would just be her and the pregnant woman. He could take on a pregnant woman…

Grant let the smile slowly spread across his face. Yes, tomorrow.

NCIS

"Oh, man! I bet I have like a million paper cuts! And they're cardboard paper cuts! Those are the worst kind! Lexi so owes us for this!" Piper felt a hand connect with the back of her head. "Hey! What was that for?"

"Being a whiner baby." Amelia said simply.

"I think your slaps have gotten harder since you got pregnant." Piper rubbed the back of her head as they walked out if the kitchen, shutting off lights as they went.

"Only because my tolerance level has dramatically decreased." They made it to the main door. Piper could see Gavin sitting in his car waiting for Amelia. He had his head down like he was looking at something. Piper guessed it was his phone. Amelia had suddenly stopped, just short of opening the door.

"What?" Piper asked.

"I dunno. Just felt something weird for a second…"

"Probably the baby kicking you for hitting me so hard." Piper joked. Amelia's uneasy expression became more intense. "Hey, are you okay?" Piper reached out and put her hand on Amelia's shoulder.

"Yeah," Amelia shook her head. "Probably just all that spicy food I ate earlier." Amelia finally opened the door.

Once they were outside, Amelia made sure the door was locked. Piper looked over at Gavin's car again. His head was still down. Just as both women moved out from the entrance to the bakery and onto the sidewalk…

"Hey!" A male voice stopped them both.

They both looked separate ways to try and find the voice. The pitch back made it hard for their eyes to adjust. Piper instinctively shrunk back. Amelia's first instinct was to brace herself. Piper felt a scuffle to her right. She turned and saw Amelia overcome by a large shadow. Before Piper could scream for help, Amelia's left hand shot up, connecting hard with something. Then her right foot shot out and connected with something else. Piper blinked twice and her eyes finally focused.

Lying on the ground, completely knocked unconscious, was a man she immediately recognized.

Gavin was suddenly standing at Amelia's side. She looked up at him, and in a very annoyed voice…

"Where were you?" Gavin's jaw dropped at her question.

"In the car?" He offered with his hands up. Amelia rolled her eyes.

"Well, make yourself useful and call the police." She ordered.

"No, we should call Tony." Piper finally found her voice.

"Why?" They both asked.

"This guy is a Marine. And he just assaulted a Marine dependent. Well, technically, two Marine dependents." She pointed at Amelia's belly. "It's his jurisdiction. But mostly, I just wanna see this ass in an interrogation box with Tony's boss."

"The old guy?" Amelia asked. She looked back down at the still unconscious man.

"You should hear Tony talk about that old guy. Apparently, he makes grown men cry."

"_I_ make grown men cry." Amelia said, stepping over the body.

"We better call _somebody_, before he wakes up." Gavin knelt down to check the man's pulse. "Yup, still breathing, though."

"You call Tony. I'll call Lexi." Amelia ordered.

NCIS

Half-way across D.C. Lexi's phone buzzed. She was enjoying a wonderful night under the stars with her boyfriend when Amelia decided to text her. Sitting on the park bench, Lexi sighed. She pulled her phone out and flipped it open.

**Text from Amelia: Just punched out a guy in front of your store. Might wanna let Tim know.**

Lexi re-read the text and laughed. She showed it to Tim, who also laughed. This had to be a joke. She texted Amelia back…

**To Amelia: Was it Tony?**

**From Amelia: No. It's the Marine we set Piper up with. He tried to attack me. I knocked him out. Tony on his way here.**

**To Amelia: OMFG Really! **

**From Amelia: YES REALLY! **(Lexi could almost feel the virtual head-slap through the phone) **On our way to NCIS. Meet there.**

NCIS

As soon as Lexi and Tim stepped off the elevator, they were greeted with an eyebrow arch stand-off. Gibbs and Amelia stood, facing each other, both with their eyebrows arched in anger.

"What is my husband doing in interrogation?" Amelia demanded. "I was the one who hit the guy!"

"Corporal Thanes claims it was your husband who assaulted him and that it was unprovoked." Gibbs was glaring down at the dark-haired woman. Tim could tell that Amelia had been yelling for a while. Gibbs was close to losing his sense of humor.

"And you believe him?" Amelia exploded. Piper looked to be hiding behind Tony. Tony just grinned, obviously enjoying the show.

"Do I believe that a Marine took down another Marine? Yes! Do I believe that a woman would try to cover for her husband by taking the blame? Yes!" Gibbs put his hands on his hips. "Neither of you have defensive wounds on you. That tells me one of you got the drop on him. I'm more inclined to believe it was the Marine with training, _not _the short pregnant woman."

Amelia's eyes bulged for a second. She moved to take a step forward but Tony and Piper each grabbed one of her arms. Gibbs' arms dropped to his sides and he looked at her like she was crazy.

"Did you just try to come at me?" He asked incredulously.

"Boss," Tony's voice was strained. "She's still trying to." Finally, Amelia backed off.

It was only at this point that Lexi felt it was safe enough to approach her friend.

"Are you okay?" She asked quietly.

"No I am not okay!" Amelia shouted. "This… Person, will not listen!"

Gibbs threw up his hands and turned to walk away.

"Hey!" Lexi called out to Gibbs. "I hope you…" She sucked in a breath. "STEP ON A LEGO!" She looked back at Amelia in time to see her eyebrows arch again.

"Step on a Lego?" Tony asked.

"Hey," Lexi said, turning to face him. "That would hurt." She paused for a second. "Can you get into my security cameras from here?" She asked, looking at Tim.

"Yeah." He jumped into action.

"How come no one did that earlier?" Amelia asked, still pissed.

"Because McGee wasn't here to do it earlier." Tony said, moving to stand behind McGee. It didn't take long before…

"I'm in." McGee announced.

"Put it on the plasma." Everyone jumped and turned. Gibbs had returned with a fresh coffee. He stood in front of the plasma and waited. The screen came on and everyone else watched.

The picture quality was better than most surveillance cameras. Tim was happy to see that Lexi's money had not gone to waste. There was a clear picture of Amelia and Piper leaving the store. Both women could be seen stopping at the same time. A shadow passed and there was a scuffle. Tony sucked in a breath when he saw Piper's scared face look almost right at the camera. Then Gavin was running towards the two women and the body on the ground.

Gibbs' eyes narrowed. He had been wrong… How the hell did _that_ happen?

"Ahem." Amelia loudly cleared her throat.

"I just have one question." Gibbs said, looking right at Amelia. "Why aren't _you_ a Marine?"

"Oh, please." She scoffed. "So can my husband and I go home now?"

"McGee." Tim stood at Gibbs' command. "Tell Ziva to release Gavin Shorne. DiNozzo, send Thanes to processing. Then _everyone_ can go home." He took a sip of his coffee and turned away. Tim left immediately to carry out his orders. Tony twisted around and faced Amelia.

"Was that an apology?" She asked Tony.

"He doesn't really _do_ apologies."

"Figures."

"I can't help but wonder about you…" He said, still looking at her.

"Scuse me?" Amelia crossed her arms.

"As protective as you are of your friends… Why would you set Piper up on a date with that psycho?"

"First of all, contrary to popular belief," she looked at Piper. "I am not psychic. So how was I to know he was a psycho? And secondly…" She moved until she was right in front of him. "I set Piper up so you would see that she is capable of going on a real date. You spent so long being her 'friend' and dragging your heels, I thought you'd never ask her out! Even with all the advice I gave you! I felt that a more straightforward push was in order."

"You set me up just to make him jealous?" Piper asked. She wasn't too surprised.

"It worked didn't it. When will you people learn? I may not be psychic, but I see _everything._" Tony looked at Piper doubtfully.

"It's just better not to question." Piper said, shaking her head.

For once, Tony heeded the warning.


	5. Chapter 5

Tony almost didn't want to wake her. Piper was slumped in the passenger seat of his car. She had been quiet the entire drive here from NCIS. He thought she just didn't want to talk about what had happened at the bakery. He hadn't realized she was just exhausted. He leaned over and brushed her hair out of her face. How could McGee think Tony didn't really love her…

He could see McGee's point. Yes, Tony had a bad history with women. It was all his own fault too. But couldn't people change? Apparently not in McGee's mind. But Piper was the complete opposite of any other woman he had ever dated. Well, aside from being damn beautiful. She was spunky, disagreeable to the point of annoyance, and horribly opinionated. Not to mention the fact that she was as restless and jittery as a slinky that had just been kicked down a set of stairs. She didn't take crap from people, but also knew when to keep her mouth shut. Of course the only one she really shut her mouth around was Amelia…

And there was another enigma: Amelia. That woman went against almost everything Tony knew about women. But she was fierce when it came to protecting her friends. That was why he could understand why all of her friends looked to her for guidance. Tony had no doubt that if Amelia hadn't personally approved of both himself and McGee, Lexi and Piper would still be single.

Lexi was the one person in the whole bakery group that Tony understood. Lexi knew all too well what real loss was. Tony had a feeling that there was some big black mark on Amelia's past, but Lexi didn't hide the fact that she had a weak personality. Amelia put up a wall around her feelings. Lexi shot her emotions right in people's faces. Her blatant honesty was what made Tony like her so much. She freely admitted that she needed someone to take care of her. McGee was perfect for her in that he thrived on caring for other people. They complimented each other.

And there was the rub. McGee was so protective of Lexi's feelings, that he wasn't going to let anyone hurt Lexi, or anyone of her friends. He was so terrified that Tony would hurt Piper, and in turn, anger or hurt Lexi. At first, Tony thought McGee was just pissed that Tony finally found a girlfriend who was just as good as McGee's girlfriend. Suddenly, McGee's perfect Lexi, wasn't so unique anymore. But after tonight… After Piper was almost hurt, Tony's tunnel vision finally widened. This wasn't about jealousy, or I have something you don't have. This was really about McGee's fear and distrust. And Tony found himself almost resenting McGee for even considering the fact that he would ever hurt Piper.

He really was in love with her.

"You gonna stare at me all night?" Tony was so lost in thought that he didn't realize Piper was looking right at him.

"Well, you're nice to stare at." His sarcasm didn't fool Piper. He could see it on her face. "I was thinking about you."

"I hope so, seeing as how you were just looking right at me." She smiled and moved to unhook her seatbelt. She had her hand on the door handle when Tony stopped her.

"Wait… I…"

"What." She shifted so her back was against the door.

"I love you." His face was so serious that Piper zoned out for a second. "I love you, Piper."

"I love you, too."

Piper didn't remember getting out of the car. She didn't remember going up to her apartment. She had no idea how all of her clothes got on the floor. The only thing her mind registered, was Tony's warm body on top of her.

"I love you." Tony's whispers tickled her ears. "I love you, Piper."

"Tony." His mouth covered hers, muffling her own, 'I love you.' She put force into the kiss, letting him feel what she wanted to say. A million thoughts crossed her mind, each one more sappy than the last.

'_This is how it feels. This is what all those horrible soapy love stories were trying to tell me. This is what love feels like.' _She almost chided herself for such mushy thoughts.

Then Tony's mouth moved to her neck and she lost her ability to form coherent thoughts. She forgot about holding back and let her hands dig into his back. Instead of a grunt of pain, her bold movements only encouraged Tony. His hands grazed all her sacred places. He bit down on her shoulder and neck.

"Make love to me." She mewled. "Please, Tony, make love to me."

She felt his body go into overdrive. His muscles tensed and he wrapped himself tighter around her. His mind told him to go slowly. He wanted so much to pleasure her, to show her how much he loved her. But his body refused to cooperate. His movements were too quick and jerky. He entered her hard. She dug her fingernails into his hips as he rocked back and forth. He tried to slow down, but every time his body began to relax, she would squirm against him.

"Tony… Tony…" She was breathless and he knew she was close. His vision blurred when he came. At the same time, he felt her body clench and then relax. He rolled to her side and pulled her close. He nuzzled against her neck and kissed her. "What were you thinking about?" Her sudden question made him turn on his side to face her.

"I can't really think at all with your naked body squirming against me." He smirked at her.

"No, I mean, in the car. You had this look on your face. I've never seen it before."

I was thinking about how much I love you." Her face broke into a sappy grin. "I was also thinking about how much I'm amazed that Amelia hasn't completely lost her temper with all of us. With everything going on… And McGee being such an ass."

"She doesn't get mad… She's vindictive, but she's also creative. It's kinda dangerous, actually. I know she's got something in the works." Piper stopped herself before she said too much. "But I think it only involves Tim and Lexi. Tim is pissing her off more than anyone… I think."

"She likes me though, right?"

"She approves… Be happy with that." Piper snuggled closer to him. "And I definitely approve. I honestly never thought…"

"What?"

"You make me think mushy things." Tony's body shook with laughter.

"Well," he made himself stop laughing. "If you're being honest I guess I have to be too." He put a hand on her cheek. "You make me think about the future. Usually, I only think about how long it will be before things crash and burn. Or all I can think about is how I'm going to make a clean break of it. But with you… All I think about is the next time I'm gonna see you."

"So, in short, you think mushy thoughts too."

"Basically. But I thought my speech sounded prettier."

"They usually do. But I think you rehearse." Tony nodded. "But it was pretty."

"You're pretty."

"I'm sleepy."

"Go to sleep. I'll be here when you wake up."

"Kay…" She yawned. "But its your turn to make breakfast."

Tony smiled when she closed her eyes.

_YES, THERE WILL BE MORE IN THIS SERIES!_


End file.
